# PAUL KELLY Reflects on Rivers and Rain, Out July 29

- Link: https://www.nyrdcast.com/paul-kelly-reflects-on-rivers-and-rain-out-july-29/
- Published: 2022-07-19T16:00:00-05:00
- Author: Eugene Tierney

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“One of the finest songwriters I have ever heard, Australian or otherwise.”_ –_**_
ROLLING STONE_**

“An extraordinary songwriter, with an especially keen eye for lyrical detail.” _–_**
_TROUSER PRESS_**

Kelly “writes some of the most accomplished erotic love songs in pop.” _– _**_LOS
ANGELES TIMES_**

**PAUL KELLY**
**REFLECTS ON **_**RIVERS AND RAIN**_**DIGITAL RETROSPECTIVE COLLECTION****
DUE JULY 29 via GAWD AGGIE/COOKING VINYL RECORDS**

**“Everything Turns to White” and “Love Never Runs on Time”
are among the classic
Kelly tunes contained in this 21-track water-themed compilation.

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**PAUL KELLY**
_Rivers and Rain_

**JULY 18, 2022 (**Melbourne, Australia) — Water has been an elemental image in **
Paul Kelly’s** music. “If I were to make a compilation of all my ‘water’ songs, 
the track list would be overflowing,” he laughs at his appropriate wordplay. So,
for the second installment of his themed compilation series, the Australian singer/
songwriter says he “decided to narrow the channel to rivers and rain,” which have
personal significance to him. “One of the great pleasures in life is lying in bed
listening to the rain or reading a book in a nook inside as rain falls outside,”
Kelly muses about the transformative power of water in motion. “You can dream by
a river; court and picnic by a river; sail or row or float down a river, and drown
in a river.”

Filled to the brim with songs from his five decades of exceptional music making,
the 20 tracks of _**Rivers and Rain**_ are skimmed from his much-admired albums,
such as his award-winning releases _Nothing But A Dream, Goin’ Your Way, Life Is
Fine_, and _Nature_, as well as his epic eight-CD retrospective, _The A-Z Recordings_.
The lone unreleased track, “Northern Rivers,” is a 2021 recording that Kelly describes
as “a love song set in contrasting landscapes.”

Lyrically ebbing and flowing with water imagery, the collection envelops the music
with poetic attachments to rivers and rain. In “When a Woman Loves a Man,” a river
serves as a metaphor for how love can deepen over time, “Smoke Under the Bridge”
is a place where a man comes to terms with his life. Rain represents a love lost
on “Petrichor” but signals a sign of change in “Smell Like Rain.”  

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**PAUL KELLY**
photo credit: Michael Hili

**Song stream: [“Northern Rivers”](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=9049adbf42&e=615f2b8493)**

Hailed as a literary songwriter, Paul Kelly has turned to literature for inspiration
on occasion. This compilation features the darkly ironic **“Life Is Fine,”** where
Kelly sets a **Langston Hughes** poem to music. One of Kelly’s best-known songs,**“
Everything Turns to White,”** was inspired by a **Raymond Carver** short story and
_Rivers and Rain_ presents an especially powerful, stripped-down rendition that 
comes from 2010’s _The A-Z Recordings_. Rivers and rain also loom large on two exquisite
story-songs about indigenous Australians: a cover of **L.J. Hill’s **poignant** “
Pretty Bird Tree”** and Kelly’s heartbreaking **“Maralinga (Rainy Land),”** about
the British doing nuclear tests on land near indigenous communities.

Beyond showcasing the depth of Paul Kelly’s songwriting talent, _Rivers and Rain
_reveals the breadth of his musicianship, too. The gentle **“Summer Rain” **is performed
simply with piano and strings, and an atmospheric electric guitar radiates throughout**“
Midnight Rain.”** From Paul Kelly and the Messengers’ 1992 _Hidden Things _is a 
folk-rocking version of **Woody Guthrie’s “Pastures of Plenty.”** There is a twangy
gospel-ish quality to the rather solemn **“Gathering Storm” **while a country soul
vibe enlivens **“I Close My Eyes and Think Of You.”**

Kelly explored his interest in soul and gospel music on 2014’s _The Merri Soul Sessions_,
which is represented here with the Sunday morning foot-stomper **“Hasn’t It Rained”**
and the rousing **“Smells Like Rain,” **featuring **Linda Bull** on lead vocals.
Kelly also reveals an appreciation for standards with his affectionate take of the**
Henry Mancini/Johnny Mercer **classic,** “Moon River,” **done as a subdued duet 
with **Neil Finn** (_Crowded House_) from their 2013 live album _Goin’ My Way._

The 21 songs on _Rivers and Rain_ epitomize what Finn described as the unique and
powerful way “Kelly mixes up everyday detail with the big issues of life, death,
love and struggle.” Critic Darren Wang proclaimed Kelly’s work displays “a transparency
into the craft of songwriting that is unsurpassed in pop music today”, while _All
Music Guide’s _Thom Jurek lauds Kelly’ as “a songwriter whose peers are few; they
include **Townes Van Zandt, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Elvis Costello,**
and** Ronnie Lane**.” Revered in his homeland, Kelly has been inducted into the 
Australian Record Industry Association’s Hall of Fame and earned the prestigious
title of an Officer of the Order of Australia for his distinguished service to the
arts.

Paul Kelly will continue to digitally release more themed compilations in the near
future.

_**Rivers and Rain **_**
Track List

1. Northern Rivers _(Previously Unreleased)
_2. Letter In The Rain – _Life is Fine_3. The River Song – _Nature_4. When A Woman
Loves A Man – _Spring and Fall_5. Petrichor – _Life Is Fine_6. Pretty Bird Tree –
_Death’s Dateless Night_7. Morning Storm – _Nature_8. Smells Like Rain – _The Merri
Soul Sessions_9. Summer Rain – _Wanted Man_10. Pastures Of Plenty – _Hidden Things_11.
Everything’s Turning To White – _The A-Z Recordings_12. Midnight Rain – _Nothing
But a Dream_13. Life Is Fine _– Life Is Fine_14. The Pretty Place – _The A-Z Recordings
_15. Love Never Runs On Time – _The A-Z Recordings_16. I Close My Eyes and Think
Of You – _Nothing But a Dream_17. Hasn’t It Rained – _The Merri Soul Sessions_18.
Smoke Under the Bridge – _Nothing But a Dream_19. Gathering Storm – _Smoke_20. Moon
River (Live with Neil Finn) _– Goin’ My Way_21. Maralinga (Rainy Land) – _The A-
Z Recordings_

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